The remote control device has become a ubiquitous part of daily life, serving to control such diverse electronic equipment as televisions and various audio-visual devices. As a result, they tend to be handled by a wide range of persons, using a widely divergent level of care. The remote control device is thus both subject to damage, and likely to become a vector for passing potentially infective agents. This latter problem is particularly acute, as the electrical nature of these devices and their plurality of pushbuttons both act to make cleaning relatively difficult.
Various devices have attempted to deal with aspects of these problems, although none as reasonably and effectively as the instant invention.
First, the issue of damage must be considered from several aspects. A number of devices attempt to prevent impact damage, such as might occur in dropping the remote control device. A prototypical example is U.S. Pat. No. 5,931,434 to Rodriguez. The '434 device provides a peripheral collar type structure around a remote control device designed to resist impact. The utility of such a device is, however, dubious. To begin with, casual experience with remote controls devices will suggest to most users that the units are, in fact, quite resistant to impact damage on their own, and there is little benefit from additional padding. Additionally, such a unit does nothing to confront the main sort of damage a remote control unit is likely to encounter in the real world, the intrusion of dirt or liquids into the unit.
The problem of an electrical device exposed to dirt and liquid is addressed better in such devices as U.S. Pat. No. 5,499,713 to Huffer. The '713 device provides a closable envelope that surrounds a remote control device. However, while such an envelope may protect somewhat against dirt or liquid intrusion, or make the surface easier to clean, the device does little if anything to protect the user of such devices.
A remote control device, especially when found in the homes of large families, or in such multi-user environments as schools, hotels, or hospitals, is handled by a large number of people. Each of the persons who handle the remote control device imparts some level of contamination onto the surface of the device. Providing only an outside envelope, such as the '713 device, does no more than interpose another layer onto the exterior of the device. The potential for contagion is not particularly reduced, nor does the operator have any reliable indication as to the cleanliness state of the device.
Accordingly, the art has needed a means for improving the art of remote control covers. While some of the prior art devices attempted to improve the state of the art of remote control covers, none has achieved the unique and novel configurations and capabilities of the present invention. The present invention makes many improvements over the current state of the art. First, the enclosure is sealed while in use, preventing contamination from reaching the electronic controller. Second, the seal is permanent, making the enclosure tamper evident. Third, being formed of inexpensive materials, soiled covers can be easily stripped off and replaced. At least in some embodiments, the cover is formed from a material having antimicrobial surface qualities. With these capabilities taken into consideration, the instant invention addresses many of the shortcomings of the prior art and offers significant benefits heretofore unavailable. Further, none of the above inventions and patents, taken either singly or in combination, is seen to describe the instant invention as claimed.